The examination of the grain refining effects of titanium in case of AlSi7MgCu0.5 alloy

Abstract

Due to the rapidly developing technologies and the various expectations of the customers, the continuous development of the products is necessary. In case of automotive industry, the increasingly more demanding expectations and requirements pose great challenge for the casting industry. One of the most significant requirements is the production of lightweight but high strength castings. Thus, aluminium became one of the most widely used base material for the automotive industry. However, to maintain a lasting presence on the market, continuous development and the improvement of the mechanical properties of the castings is necessary. During the experiments, the effect of grain refinement with AlTi5B1 master alloy on the mechanical properties, porosity, secondary dendrite arm spacings (SDAS) and grain size of AlSi7MgCu0.5 alloy was examined. The initial 1000 ppm titanium concentration was increased to 2000 ppm, with the addition of 200 ppm at each step.